The Cape Town Bioregional Plan

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

The Cape Town Bioregional Plan The Cape Town Bioregional Plan Adopted as Council Policy1 on 19 August 2015 C43/08/15: RESOLUTIONS TAKEN BY THE EXECUTIVE MAYOR IN TERMS OF DELEGATED POWERS AND DECISIONS TAKEN TOGETHER WITH THE MEMBERS OF THE MAYORAL COMMITTEE: JULY 2015 Prepared by the City of Cape Town Municipality Energy, Environmental & Spatial Planning Directorate Environmental Resource Management Department August 2015 Edited by: Arne Purves E [email protected] Patricia Holmes E [email protected] 1 This plan has not been published in terms of NEM:BA (Act 10 of 2004), but adopted as Council policy. City of Cape Town Bioregional Plan Energy, Environmental & Spatial Planning | Environmental Resource Management Department [Blank Page] 2 City of Cape Town Bioregional Plan Energy, Environmental & Spatial Planning | Environmental Resource Management Department Executive Summary The Cape Town Bioregional Plan was adopted as City Policy in July 2015 (Annexure 3). It comprises a biodiversity profile for the bioregion, the Biodiversity Network and management guidelines. The Cape Town Biodiversity Network is a spatial plan that shows terrestrial and aquatic features that are critical for conserving biodiversity and maintaining ecosystem functioning. These are classified as Critical Biodiversity Areas (CBAs) and Critical Ecological Support Areas (CESAs) respectively. The Provincial Government of the Western Cape has incorporated the Biodiversity Network into the Western Cape Biodiversity Framework. The bioregion encompasses the City of Cape Town metropolitan area of 2,460km2. The Bioregional Plan adheres to the principles outlined in the National Environmental Management: Biodiversity Act (Act 10 of 2004) and comprises a biodiversity profile, the Biodiversity Network (a map of biodiversity priorities), with accompanying land-use planning and decision-making guidelines, and additional management measures. It indicates Critical Biodiversity Areas (CBAs) and Critical Ecological Support Areas (CESAs). The CBAs are required to meet national biodiversity targets for terrestrial and wetland ecosystems according to the National Spatial Biodiversity Assessment (Rouget et al. 2004). CBAs and CESAs are required to secure Cape Town’s unique biodiversity into the future and ensure sustainable development. The purpose of the Bioregional Plan is to inform and guide planning, environmental assessment and natural resource management by a wide range of sectors whose policies and decisions impact on biodiversity. It will provide a framework for all City line departments to align their environmental functions and responsibilities. The spatially explicit Biodiversity Network (CBA map) will facilitate forward planning that minimizes impacts on biodiversity. This will create a more integrated, cost- effective approach to environmental management and conservation in the bioregion. The intention of the Bioregional Plan is to provide critical information on biodiversity to guide forward planning and future development. The Bioregional Plan is aligned with the National Spatial Biodiversity Assessment (Driver et al. 2005) and National Biodiversity Framework and serves as City Policy for biodiversity priority areas in Cape Town. The Bioregional Plan aims to ensure that the National Environmental Management Act (NEMA, Act 107 of 1998) principles are applied within Cape Town in an effective and equitable manner, in order to avoid loss and degradation of natural habitat in Critical Biodiversity Areas. The Cape Town Biodiversity Network is a regularly updated, fine-scale systematic biodiversity plan. As natural habitat is being lost continuously to formal and informal developments, agriculture and mining, securing the Biodiversity Network is an urgent priority. Owing to Cape Town’s exceptional biodiversity richness and uniqueness, as well as the intensive pressures on the land, minimum national biodiversity targets can no longer be achieved for eight out of 19 national vegetation types found in the bioregion. The Biodiversity Network was integrated into the Cape Town Spatial Development Framework (CTSDF) which was then approved as the statutory spatial component of the Integrated Development Plan (IDP) in terms of the Municipal Systems Act (Act 32 of 2000). Both The CTSDF and IDP embody the principles of sustainable development. The eight district Spatial Development Plans (SDPs) and Environmental Management Frameworks (EMFs) were approved by Council as spatial policy in terms of Section 4(10) of the Land Use Planning Ordinance and by the Department of Environmental Affairs and Development Planning, with the concurrence of the national Minister, and 3 City of Cape Town Bioregional Plan Energy, Environmental & Spatial Planning | Environmental Resource Management Department in terms of the 2010 EMF regulations, respectively. The District SDPs inform and respond to the CTSDF and are the tools used on a daily basis to guide statutory land use decision-making. The EMFs must be taken into account in any application for Environmental Authorization. The Bioregional Plan objectives and guidelines find expression through the CTSDF and the district SDPs and EMFs. The mandated users of the Cape Town Bioregional Plan include the City, which must align the contents of the plan into future revisions of the IDP, CTSDF, EMFs and District SDPs. Note that the Cape Town Bioregional Plan is not in itself a multi-sectoral planning and assessment tool and that the CTSDF is the statutory land use management and decision-making plan used in guiding statutory land use decision-making in the City. In addition, any organ of state preparing an environmental implementation plan or environmental management plan should refer to the Bioregional Plan. Further mandated users include environmental decision-makers and the competent authorities prior to issuing environmental authorizations for: the ploughing of virgin land, prospecting and mining, and the granting of water licenses and water allocations. The Bioregional Plan will be monitored and reviewed on a five-yearly basis. The plan will be reviewed against a number of set biodiversity targets and indicators. These will include the biodiversity targets and indicators as set in the City’s State of Environment report. Acknowledgements The editors wish to thank all the contributors who assisted in the compilation of this Bioregional Plan, all the reviewers of the draft documents and the team behind the technical reports. The many contributions that have been made (starting in 2003) are too many to list, but it must be noted that this plan is the accumulation of the work of many people and organisations that are deeply committed to the protection and conservation of the City’s biodiversity. 4 City of Cape Town Bioregional Plan Energy, Environmental & Spatial Planning | Environmental Resource Management Department Table of Contents EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ..................................................................................................................................3 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................................................................4 LIST OF TABLES ..............................................................................................................................................8 LIST OF MAPS ................................................................................................................................................8 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ...............................................................................................................................8 PART A 10 1. INTRODUCTION ..............................................................................................................................10 1.1 PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES ....................................................................................................................... 10 1.2 LIMITATIONS AND CONSTRAINTS ................................................................................................................ 12 1.3 INTERNATIONAL, NATIONAL AND LOCAL OBLIGATIONS .............................................................................. 13 1.3.1 International ......................................................................................................................... 13 1.3.2 National ................................................................................................................................ 13 1.3.3 Local ...................................................................................................................................... 14 1.4 LEGISLATION ............................................................................................................................................ 15 1.4.1 Legal Framework of the Bioregional Plan ......................................................................... 15 2 POLICY AND STRATEGIES ..............................................................................................................16 2.1 PROVINCIAL SPATIAL DEVELOPMENT FRAMEWORK (PSDF) ........................................................................ 16 2.2 INTEGRATED DEVELOPMENT PLAN (IDP) ................................................................................................... 17 2.3 CAPE TOWN SPATIAL DEVELOPMENT FRAMEWORK .................................................................................... 17 2.4 ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT FRAMEWORKS (EMFS) & DISTRICT
Recommended publications
  • A Spotted Landscape: Threats to Leopard, Panthera Pardus Pardus, & Their Prey Within the Boland Mountain Complex, Western Cape
    A spotted landscape: Threats to leopard, Panthera pardus pardus, & their prey within the Boland Mountain Complex, Western Cape by Brittany Claudia Schultz Thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science at Stellenbosch University Department of Conservation Ecology and Entomology, Faculty of AgriSciences Supervisor: Dr. Alison J. Leslie Scientific Advisor: Anita Wilkinson March, 2020 1 Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za Declaration By submitting this thesis electronically, I declare that the entirety of the work contained therein is my own, original work, that I am the sole author thereof (save to the extent explicitly otherwise stated), that reproduction and publication thereof by Stellenbosch University will not infringe any third party rights and that I have not previously in its entirety or in part submitted it for obtaining any qualification. Signed: Brittany C. Schultz Date: March, 2020. Copyright © 2020 Stellenbosch University All rights reserved 2 Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za Abstract The collapse of prey-bases threatens many predators globally and may contribute to some predators’ localised extinctions. A similar cascade is a potential threat to leopard Panthera pardus and their medium-sized mammalian prey populations in the Fynbos biome. Medium-sized mammals have reportedly been negatively impacted by a number of anthropogenic threats in agricultural land-covers that act as buffers between human development and natural fynbos habitats. One of these threats and a driver of many, is the loss of habitat from human-caused land-cover changes. The Boland Mountain Complex (BMC) is one of the eight patches of protected mountainous areas, proclaimed as a United Nations Environmental, Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s (UNESCO) World Heritage Site, in the Western Cape Province, South Africa.
    [Show full text]
  • Freshwater Fishes
    WESTERN CAPE PROVINCE state oF BIODIVERSITY 2007 TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1 Introduction 2 Chapter 2 Methods 17 Chapter 3 Freshwater fishes 18 Chapter 4 Amphibians 36 Chapter 5 Reptiles 55 Chapter 6 Mammals 75 Chapter 7 Avifauna 89 Chapter 8 Flora & Vegetation 112 Chapter 9 Land and Protected Areas 139 Chapter 10 Status of River Health 159 Cover page photographs by Andrew Turner (CapeNature), Roger Bills (SAIAB) & Wicus Leeuwner. ISBN 978-0-620-39289-1 SCIENTIFIC SERVICES 2 Western Cape Province State of Biodiversity 2007 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Andrew Turner [email protected] 1 “We live at a historic moment, a time in which the world’s biological diversity is being rapidly destroyed. The present geological period has more species than any other, yet the current rate of extinction of species is greater now than at any time in the past. Ecosystems and communities are being degraded and destroyed, and species are being driven to extinction. The species that persist are losing genetic variation as the number of individuals in populations shrinks, unique populations and subspecies are destroyed, and remaining populations become increasingly isolated from one another. The cause of this loss of biological diversity at all levels is the range of human activity that alters and destroys natural habitats to suit human needs.” (Primack, 2002). CapeNature launched its State of Biodiversity Programme (SoBP) to assess and monitor the state of biodiversity in the Western Cape in 1999. This programme delivered its first report in 2002 and these reports are updated every five years. The current report (2007) reports on the changes to the state of vertebrate biodiversity and land under conservation usage.
    [Show full text]
  • NYMPHALIDAE Nationally As Rare (Range Restricted)
    Mecenero et al. / Metamorphosis 31(4): 1–160 134 DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.4314/met.v31i4.6 localities for this species. This taxon thus qualifies globally under the IUCN criteria as Least Concern and is classified FAMILY: NYMPHALIDAE nationally as Rare (Range Restricted). Genus Cassionympha Dickson, 1981. Change in status from SABCA: The status has not changed from the previous assessment. Cassionympha camdeboo (Dickson, [1981]) Camdeboo Dull Brown; Kamdeboo Bosbruintjie Threats: No threats at present. Ernest L. Pringle Conservation measures and research required: No conservation actions recommended. Research is required LC into its taxonomy, life history and ecology. Better Rare – Restricted Range appreciation of its distribution and subpopulation sizes is Endemic needed. Cassionympha perissinottoi Pringle, 2013 Southern Rainforest Dull Brown; Kusbruintjie Ernest L. Pringle LC Rare – Restricted Range, Habitat Specialist Endemic Type locality: Eastern Cape province: Aberdeen. Taxonomy: There are no notable issues. Distribution: Endemic to the Eastern Cape province of South Africa, in the Aberdeen district. Habitat: Comparatively moist woodland and scrub at high altitude. Vegetation types: NKl2 Eastern Lower Karoo, NKu2 Upper Type locality: Cape Aghulas, Western Cape. Karoo Hardeveld. Taxonomy: Although there is no lack of clarity about the Assessment rationale: This is a range restricted endemic differences between this taxon and its close congeners, all species found in the Eastern Cape province, South Africa 2 records from the southern Cape for Cassionympha cassius (EOO 30 km ). There are two known subpopulations, which and C. detecta will have to be reexamined, because many are not threatened and are in remote areas. Further could represent this new species.
    [Show full text]
  • Restoration of Cape Flats Sand Fynbos: the Significance of Pre-Germination Treatments and Moisture Regime
    RESTORATION OF CAPE FLATS SAND FYNBOS: THE SIGNIFICANCE OF PRE-GERMINATION TREATMENTS AND MOISTURE REGIME. by Mukundi Mukundamago Thesis presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Master of Science in Conservation Ecology, Department of Conservation Ecology and Entomology at the University of Stellenbosch Supervisor: Prof. K.J. Esler Co-supervisors: Dr. M. Gaertner and Dr. P.M. Holmes Faculty of AgriSciences March 2016 I Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za Declaration By submitting this thesis electronically, I declare that the entirety of the work contained therein is my own, original work, that I am the sole author thereof (save to the extent explicitly otherwise stated), that reproduction and publication thereof by Stellenbosch University will not infringe any third party rights and that I have not previously in its entirety or in part submitted it for obtaining any qualification. Copyright © 2016 Stellenbosch University All rights reserved I Stellenbosch University https://scholar.sun.ac.za SUMMARY The seed ecology of the Cape Flats Sand Fynbos (CFSF) vegetation’s species in Blaauwberg Nature Reserve, in Western Cape South Africa, was investigated within the context of a broader restoration ecology project “Blaauwberg Ecological Restoration Project”1. Cape Flats Sand Fynbos (CFSF) vegetation is considered as a critically endangered vegetation type due to agricultural development, urban transformation, and degradation caused by invasive alien Acacia species. The City of Cape Town is clearing alien plants at Blaauwberg Nature Reserve (BBNR) in an attempt to restore this remaining CFSF fragment. These efforts are associated with challenges, since alien stands have depleted indigenous soil- stored seedbanks.
    [Show full text]
  • Aspects of the Ecology and Conservation of Frogs in Urban Habitats of South Africa
    Frogs about town: Aspects of the ecology and conservation of frogs in urban habitats of South Africa DJD Kruger 20428405 Thesis submitted for the degree Philosophiae Doctor in Zoology at the Potchefstroom Campus of the North-West University Supervisor: Prof LH du Preez Co-supervisor: Prof C Weldon September 2014 i In loving memory of my grandmother, Kitty Lombaard (1934/07/09 – 2012/05/18), who has made an invaluable difference in all aspects of my life. ii Acknowledgements A project with a time scale and magnitude this large leaves one indebted by numerous people that contributed to the end result of this study. I would like to thank the following people for their invaluable contributions over the past three years, in no particular order: To my supervisor, Prof. Louis du Preez I am indebted, not only for the help, guidance and support he has provided throughout this study, but also for his mentorship and example he set in all aspects of life. I also appreciate the help of my co-supervisor, Prof. Ché Weldon, for the numerous contributions, constructive comments and hours spent on proofreading. I owe thanks to all contributors for proofreading and language editing and thereby correcting my “boerseun” English grammar but also providing me with professional guidance. Prof. Louis du Preez, Prof. Ché Weldon, Dr. Andrew Hamer, Dr. Kirsten Parris, Prof. John Malone and Dr. Jeanne Tarrant are all dearly thanked for invaluable comments on earlier drafts of parts/the entirety of this thesis. For statistical contributions I am especially also grateful to Dr. Andrew Hamer for help with Bayesian analysis and to the North-West Statistical Services consultant, Dr.
    [Show full text]
  • Driftsands Nature Reserve Complex PAMP
    EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Driftsands Nature Reserve is situated on the Cape Flats, approximately 25 km east of Cape Town on the National Route 2, in the Western Cape Province. The reserve is situated adjacent to the Medical Research Centre in Delft and is bounded by highways and human settlement on all sides. Driftsands is bound in the northwest by the R300 and the National Route 2 and Old Faure road in the south. The northern boundary is bordered by private landowners, while the eastern boundary is formed by Mfuleni Township. The Nature Reserve falls within the City of Cape Town Metropolitan Municipality. The reserve experiences a Mediterranean-type climate with warm dry summers, and cool wet winter seasons. Gale force winds from the south east prevail during the summer months, while during the winter months, north westerly winds bring rain. Driftsands Nature Reserve represents of one of the largest remaining remnants of intact Cape Flats Dune Strandveld which is classified as Endangered, and harbours at least two Endangered Cape Flats endemics, Muraltia mitior and Passerina paludosa. The Kuils River with associated floodplain wetlands, dune strandveld depressions and seeps are representative of a wetland type that has been subjected to high cumulative loss, and provides regulatory ecosystem services such as flood attenuation, ground water recharge/discharge and water quality improvement. The site provides access for cultural and/or religious practices and provides opportunities for quality curriculum based environmental education. Driftsands Nature Reserve is given the highest priority rating within the Biodiversity Network (BioNet), the fine scale conservation plan for the City of Cape Town.
    [Show full text]
  • Input Towards the Development of an Integrated Implementation Strategy
    TM 1683 Source-to-Sea River Corridor Restoration for People & Nature TOWARDS THE DEVELOPMENT OF AN INTEGRATED IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGY Interim Summary Report – November 2012 1 PROJECT SUMMARY This project, made possible through funding provided by TMF, aims to facilitate a consultative process to provide stakeholder input towards the development of an Integrated Implementation Strategy for the Source- to-Sea concept, developed for the Sand River Catchment within the City of Cape Town. As one of the most important catchments within the City of Cape Town from a biodiversity perspective, a significant amount of riverine improvement, rehabilitation and maintenance work is being undertaken by the local authority, parastatals and civil society. This project aimed to align these individual efforts towards a common vision based on the protection and enhancement of biodiversity within the catchment. It provides some guidelines as to how, where and what type of work should be undertaken. It is hoped that the through the project, communication between role-players in the catchment will be improved enabling streamlining of future on-the-ground implementation. The objectives of this project included: Phase 1: 1. Prioritising rehabilitation and conservation work in the Sand River catchment; 2. Defining a specific vision & target for each identified & prioritised management area; Phase 2: 3. Identifying what resources & actions are necessary to achieve these targets in each management area. This will take the form of collaborating with stakeholders to determine the contributions each can make towards the achievement of these targets; 4. Identifying what additional resources are required to inform future applications for funding to achieve these set targets.
    [Show full text]
  • R Conradie Orcid.Org 0000-0002-8653-4702
    Influence of the invasive fish, Gambusia affinis, on amphibians in the Western Cape R Conradie orcid.org 0000-0002-8653-4702 Dissertation submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Master of Science in Zoology at the North-West University Supervisor: Prof LH du Preez Co-supervisor: Prof AE Channing Graduation May 2018 23927399 “The whole land is made desolate, but no man lays it to heart.” JEREMIAH 12:11 i DECLARATION I, Roxanne Conradie, declare that this dissertation is my own, unaided work, except where otherwise acknowledged. It is being submitted for the degree of M.Sc. to the North-West University, Potchefstroom. It has not been submitted for any degree or examination at any other university. ____________________ (Roxanne Conradie) ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to express my gratitude to the following persons and organisations, without whose assistance this study would not have been possible: My supervisor Prof. Louis du Preez and co-supervisor Prof. Alan Channing, for guidance, advice, support, and encouragement throughout the duration of this study. Prof Louis, your passion for the biological sciences has been an inspiration to me since undergraduate Zoology classes five years ago. Prof Alan, you were a vital pillar of support for me in the Cape and I am incredibly grateful towards you. Thank you both for all the time and effort you have put into helping me with my work, for all your honest and detailed advice, as well as practical help. It is truly a privilege to have had such outstanding biologists as my mentors. My husband Louis Conradie, for offering up so many weekends in order to help me with fieldwork.
    [Show full text]
  • The Great Green Outdoors
    MAMRE CITY OF CAPE TOWN WORLD DESIGN CAPITAL CAPE TOWN 2014 ATLANTIS World Design Capital (WDC) is a biannual honour awarded by the International Council for Societies of Industrial Design (ICSID), to one city across the globe, to show its commitment to using design as a social, cultural and economic development tool. THE GREAT Cape Town Green Map is proud to have been included in the WDC 2014 Bid Book, 2014 SILWERSTROOMSTRAND and played host to the International ICSID judges visiting the city. 01 Design-led thinking has the potential to improve life, which is why Cape WORLD DESIGN CAPITAL GREEN OUTDOORS R27 Town’s World Design Capital 2014’s over-arching theme is ‘Live Design. Transform Life.’ Cape Town is defi nitively Green by Design. Our city is one of a few Our particular focus has become ‘Green by Design’ - projects and in the world with a national park and two World Heritage Sites products where environmental, social and cultural impacts inform (Table Mountain National Park and Robben Island) contained within design and aim to transform life. KOEBERG NATURE its boundaries. The Mother City is located in a biodiversity hot Green Map System accepted Cape Town’s RESERVE spot‚ the Cape Floristic Region, and is recognised globally for its new category and icon, created by Design extraordinarily rich and diverse fauna and fl ora. Infestation – the fi rst addition since 2008 to their internationally recognised set of icons. N www.capetowngreenmap.co.za Discover and experience Cape Town’s natural beauty and enjoy its For an overview of Cape Town’s WDC 2014 projects go to www.capetowngreenmap.co.za/ great outdoor lifestyle choices.
    [Show full text]
  • Fasanbi SHOWCASE
    Threatened Species Monitoring PROGRAMME Threatened Species in South Africa: A review of the South African National Biodiversity Institutes’ Threatened Species Programme: 2004–2009 Acronyms ADU – Animal Demography Unit ARC – Agricultural Research Council BASH – Big Atlassing Summer Holiday BIRP – Birds in Reserves Project BMP – Biodiversity Management Plan BMP-S – Biodiversity Management Plans for Species CFR – Cape Floristic Region CITES – Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species CoCT – City of Cape Town CREW – Custodians of Rare and Endangered Wildflowers CWAC – Co-ordinated Waterbird Counts DEA – Department of Environmental Affairs DeJaVU – December January Atlassing Vacation Unlimited EIA – Environmental Impact Assessment EMI – Environmental Management Inspector GBIF – Global Biodiversity Information Facility GIS – Geographic Information Systems IAIA – International Association for Impact Assessment IAIAsa – International Association for Impact Assessment South Africa IUCN – International Union for Conservation of Nature LAMP – Long Autumn Migration Project LepSoc – Lepidopterists’ Society of Africa MCM – Marine and Coastal Management MOA – memorandum of agreement MOU – memorandum of understanding NBI – National Botanical Institute NEMA – National Environmental Management Act NEMBA – National Environmental Management Biodiversity Act NGO – non-governmental organization NORAD – Norwegian Agency for Development Co–operation QDGS – quarter-degree grid square SABAP – Southern African Bird Atlas Project SABCA – Southern African
    [Show full text]
  • Custodians of the Cape Peninsula: a Historical and Contemporary Ethnography of Urban Conservation in Cape Town
    Custodians of the Cape Peninsula: A historical and contemporary ethnography of urban conservation in Cape Town by Janie Swanepoel Thesis presented in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Social Anthropology in the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences at Stellenbosch University Supervisor: Prof Steven L. Robins December 2013 Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za Declaration By submitting this thesis electronically, I declare that the entirety of the work contained therein is my own, original work, that I am the sole author thereof (save to the extent explicitly otherwise stated), that reproduction and publication thereof by Stellenbosch University will not infringe any third party rights and that I have not previously in its entirety or in part submitted it for obtaining any qualification. December 2013 Copyright © 2013 Stellenbosch University All rights reserved II Stellenbosch University http://scholar.sun.ac.za ABSTRACT The official custodian of the Cape Peninsula mountain chain, located at the centre of Cape Town, is the Table Mountain National Park (TMNP). This park is South Africa’s only urban open-access park and has been declared a World Heritage Site. This thesis is an anthropological and historical examination of the past and present conservation of the Cape Peninsula . I provide an overview of the relationship between the urban environment and the Cape Peninsula aiming to illustrate the produced character of the mountains and its mediation in power relations. This study of custodianship reveals that protecting and conserving the Cape Peninsula is shaped by the politics of the urban and natural environment as well as by the experience of living in the city.
    [Show full text]
  • How Many of Cassini Anagrams Should There Be? Molecular
    TAXON 59 (6) • December 2010: 1671–1689 Galbany-Casals & al. • Systematics and phylogeny of the Filago group How many of Cassini anagrams should there be? Molecular systematics and phylogenetic relationships in the Filago group (Asteraceae, Gnaphalieae), with special focus on the genus Filago Mercè Galbany-Casals,1,3 Santiago Andrés-Sánchez,2,3 Núria Garcia-Jacas,1 Alfonso Susanna,1 Enrique Rico2 & M. Montserrat Martínez-Ortega2 1 Institut Botànic de Barcelona (CSIC-ICUB), Pg. del Migdia s.n., 08038 Barcelona, Spain 2 Departamento de Botánica, Facultad de Biología, Universidad de Salamanca, 37007 Salamanca, Spain 3 These authors contributed equally to this publication. Author for correspondence: Mercè Galbany-Casals, [email protected] Abstract The Filago group (Asteraceae, Gnaphalieae) comprises eleven genera, mainly distributed in Eurasia, northern Africa and northern America: Ancistrocarphus, Bombycilaena, Chamaepus, Cymbolaena, Evacidium, Evax, Filago, Logfia, Micropus, Psilocarphus and Stylocline. The main morphological character that defines the group is that the receptacular paleae subtend, and more or less enclose, the female florets. The aims of this work are, with the use of three chloroplast DNA regions (rpl32-trnL intergenic spacer, trnL intron, and trnL-trnF intergenic spacer) and two nuclear DNA regions (ITS, ETS), to test whether the Filago group is monophyletic; to place its members within Gnaphalieae using a broad sampling of the tribe; and to investigate in detail the phylogenetic relationships among the Old World members of the Filago group and provide some new insight into the generic circumscription and infrageneric classification based on natural entities. Our results do not show statistical support for a monophyletic Filago group.
    [Show full text]